Ontario’s P&C insurance industry contributes $7.5 billion to provincial GDP
Ontario’s home, car and business insurance industry has a positive multi-billion dollar economic impact on Ontario’s economy, according to a Conference Board of Canada study released by Insurance Bureau of Canada.
The report found that the property and casualty insurance industry directly contributed $4.1 billion to Ontario’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2009 (the latest year for which figures were available) and another $3.4 billion indirectly.
The P&C insurance industry employs 22,000 workers across the province and another 41,000 Ontarians are in “spin-off” jobs related to the industry.
“Both economically and socially, insurance has and will continue to play a critical role in the development and growth of the province,” said Charles Brindamour, Chair of the Board of IBC and Chief Executive Officer of Intact Financial Corporation.
These findings are part of INSURECONOMY, a report based on a number of sources, including the Conference Board of Canada study, and an economic footprint assessment by Jupia Consultants Inc. Report partners involved in the study include the Toronto Financial Services Alliance, Insurance Bureau of Canada and the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario.
“The insurance industry has a significant economic impact, not just on Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area, but on Ontario as a whole,” Brindamour added.
From executive level presence and head offices located in Toronto to smaller offices in communities across Ontario, more than 2 out of every 100 people employed in the private sector in Ontario work for the insurance industry.
The report indicates that Ontario’s vital mix of people, opportunity, infrastructure and attitude will continue to drive the province’s growth in the future.
“Ontario is well-positioned for growth in this exciting sector,” says Janet Ecker, President of the Toronto Financial Services Alliance.
The majority of firms consulted for the report are planning to grow their collective employment by 10 per cent over the next three years.
“The report quantifies what industry has long known: that it has a substantial economic footprint in the province, one with significant growth potential built on well-paying jobs suited to the skills of the province’s highly educated workforce,” said Ralph Palumbo, Vice President, Ontario, Insurance Bureau of Canada.
Some other key findings include:
- Over 6,000 business establishments, employing more than 77,000 people.
- Wage levels that are the highest of all 10 provinces and 32 per cent above the provincial average.
- Ontario is the head office location for most of Canada’s largest insurance companies.
- Employment and economic activity in the industry is widely distributed across the province. Adjusted for the population size, there are more insurance industry business establishments in the Hamilton to Windsor corridor than in the Toronto area.
A copy of the report can be read online.
In 2010, an INSURECONOMY report was created to examine the impact of the P&C industry in Nova Scotia.
